Shirt collar inserts



June 21, 1960 J. v. ZIMMERMAN SHIRT COLLAR INSERTS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Nov. 25, 1957 INVENTOR.

ZIMMERMAN BY W ATT Y nlllr ub i un- 11 1| JAY V.

June 21, 1960 J. v. ZIMMERIMAN 2,941,702

sum-r coma INSERTS Filed Nov. 25, 1957 z Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENIOR. JAY v. ZIMMERMAN ATTY SHIRT COLLAR INSERTS Jay V. Zimmerman, 7933 Clayton Road, Clayton', Mo;

Filed NOV. 25; 1957,,Ser. N; 698;614-

2 Claims. (Cl. 223-33) This invention relates to an insert for use with shirt collars.

Ordinarily; when shirts are packaged at thefactory, a so-called puff made of tissue paper isplaced within the shirt collar to maintain the shape of the collar during shipment, handling and-storage. These tissue paper pufls are relatively expensive, and while decorative, are not particularly practical for the reason that they do not have a great deal of strength or rigidity. Consequently, the shirt collar tends to become flattened or misshapen as a result of handling. Some manufacturers add a strip of cardboard which is inserted under the collar, but this expedient adds cost and is quite time-consuming.

The preservation of the shape and cleanliness of a shirt collar is also a serious problem for laundries which must wash and iron shirts and return them to the customer just as fresh and unwrinkled as was the original shirt. In fact, the laundries are usually held to a higher standard of performance in this respect than the manufacturer. Consequently, laundries resort to very costly and timeconsuming expedients to keep the shirt, and particularly the shirt collar, in fresh, unwrinkled condition, various expensive types of collar stays, shirt-boards, and retainer bands being used.

It is, therefore, one of the objects of the present invention to provide a shirt collar insert which is capable of maintaining the shape of the collar during shipment, handling and storage of the shirt.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide a shirt collar insert of the type stated, which is selfadjusting for various sizes and shapes of shirt collars.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide a shirt collar insert of the type stated which is relatively easy to install and permits convenient display of the name or trademark of the manufacturer or seller.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a shirt collar of the type stated which is relatively inexpensive and economical to manufacture and can be inserted in a shirt with a minimum of labor.

With the above and other objects in view, my invention resides in the novel features of form, construction, arrangement, and combination of parts presently de scribed and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a shirt collar insert constructed in accordance with and embodying the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of a shirt having the insert positioned within the collar thereof;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along line 33 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary sectional view similar to Fig. 3 and showing the insert in a small size collar;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along line 55 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along line 66 of Fig. 1;

atent Fig. 7 is a perspective view of a modified form? of shirt collar insert;

Fig. 8 is a firagmentarysectional view taken: along'line 8 --8 of Fig; 7 and-showing theinsert positioned within the shirt collar;

Fig. 9 is a perspectiveview of another modified form of shirt collar insert; and

Fig. 10 is. a fragmentary sectional view taken. along line 1010 of Fig; 8 and? having.v the: insert positioned within the shirt collar.

Referring now in. more detail by reference characters to the drawings, which. illustrate practical embodiments of? thepresent invention, A designates a shirtcollar insert preferably molded of synthetic plastic, such as polystyrene, polyethylene, polyvinyl, or: the: like, and comprising a flat annular band 1 having a. contour approximately that of the neckband 2 of the shirt collar 3. At" its outer. margin 4,. theannular bandl is integrally provided with arcuate flexible'members 5, which curve outwardly and downwardly, merging integrally into straight stay-members 6. At theirlower'ends,.the staymembers 6 are integrallyprovided with; short outwardly projecting flanges 6. Extending inwardly from:the inner margin 7 of the annularban'd' 1 isra plurality of spokelike ribs 8 which are integrallyconnected to the band. 1 and to a flat strip 9, the latter preferably being positioned somewhat centrally of the annular band 11 in the manner of an advertising medallion to receive the manufacturers trademark or some such similar indicia.

The insert A is positioned within the collar 3 of the shirt 10 so that the stay-members 6 bear against the neckband 2 of the collar 3 and .the outwardly projecting flanges 6' extend under, and a short distance beyond, the neckband 2 so as to fit snugly against the body of the shirt 10. The flanges 6' will, therefore, prevent the insert A from falling out from within the collar 3 should the shirt 10 be turned upside down. .The arcuate members 5 will become more sharply arcuate, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 6, to fit into neckbands of smaller size. For example, the curvature shown in full lines in Fig. 6 will fit a size eighteen neckband and the curvature shown in dotted lines will fit a size thirteen and onehalf. Intermediate positions of curvature will, of course, fit intermediate sizes. Similarly, Fig. 3 shows the insert A in a large shirt collar 3, whereas, in Fig. 4, the insert A is shown as being positioned in a shirt collar 11 of somewhat smaller size. It will, therefore, be apparent that the shirt collar insert A can be used with a relatively wide range of collar sizes.

It is also possible to provide a modified form of shirt collar insert B, as shown in Figs. 7 and 8, which comprises a pair of complementary conical bands 13, 14, having opposite ends 15, 16, 17, 18, which overlap and are disposed in facewise contact as shown in Fig. 7. Molded integrally with, and joining, the bands 13, 14, is a web-like member 19 having outer radial margins 20, 21, which are located at the upper edge of the bands 13, 14. The web-like member 19 also includes spokelike ribs 22, 23, 24, which support a flat strip 25, the latter being similar to the fiat strip 9 previously de* scribed. When the insert B is placed within the collar 26 of the shirt 27, the bands 13, 14, fit facewise conformably against the neckband 29 of the collar 26. Since the bands 13, 14, are not rigidly connected at their opposite ends 15, 16, 17, 18, they will overlap a greater or lesser amount, depending upon the size of the neckband 29 of the shirt collar 26.

It is also possible to provide another modified form of shirt collar insert C, as shown in Figs. 9' and 10, which comprises a pair of overlapping conical bands 30, 31, which are similar to the bands 13, 14, previously described. Integrally molded with the bands 30, 31, at

3 the upper margins thereof is a plurality of spoke-like ribs 32, 32, which are joined together by means of a flat strip 33, the spoke 32' being curved a small amount at its juncture with the band 30. 'The insert C may be placed within the collar 34 in thesa'me'manner as that of the insert B, previously described, and the bands 30, 31, fit

conformably against the neckband 35 of'the collar 34-.

It will be apparent from the foregoing description that shirt collar inserts constructed in accordance with the present invention are capable of being readily inserted within the shirt collars prior to packaging 'the shirts in boxes, and the inserts will adjust themselves to vari ous sizes and shapes of shirt collars. Moreover, the inserts are sufficiently rigid to hold the shirt collars in their proper shape during handling and while stacked in shirt boxes, and since the inserts fit within the shirt collars snugly, they cannot accidentally be separated therefrom.

It should be understood that changes and modifications in the form, construction, arrangement and combination of the several parts of the shirt collar inserts may be made and substituted for those herein shown and described without departing .from the nature and principle of my invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A shirt collar insert adapted to fit into the top plane of a shirt collar opening when the collar is buttoned, said insert comprising a substantially horizontal top strip integrally formed with a plurality of outwardly radiating substantially horizontal spokes which are, in turn, integrally formed at their outer ends with a substantially horizontal annular ring, said ring being provided around its outer periphery with a plurality of uniformly spaced, relatively narrow arcuate projections, each of said projections curving outwardly and downwardly and merging integrally into a substantially straight flexible fingerlike member, said members extending downwardly and outwardly and adapted to engage and conform to the size of the neckband of the collar. I p

2. A shirt collar insert comprising a substantially horizontal top strip integrally formed with a plurality of outwardly radiating substantially horizontal spokes which are, in turn, integrally formed at their outer ends with an annular band provided with a plurality of substantially vertical uniformly spaced flexible depending fingers, said fingers terminating at their lower ends in outwardly extending flanges.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,495,153 Wald et a1 Jan. 17, 1950 FOREIGN PATENTS 158,500 Australia Aug. 26, 1954 748,512 Great Britain May 2, d 

